


Lady in the Garden

by neenwrites



Category: Doctor Who, Fairy Tail
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe, Doctor Who References, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-30
Updated: 2017-05-30
Packaged: 2018-11-06 16:54:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11040339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neenwrites/pseuds/neenwrites
Summary: She was a falling star; an angel speaking in stardust dialects. She was madness and wonder, and she asked him to come with her.





	1. Chapter 1

_Thud!_

The large man fell to the floor in a mess of blankets and black hair, flailing for purchase.  A string of profanities fell from his mouth, partially from the icy hardwood he found his bare back on and partially from the massive crash outside that had put him on the floor in the first place.  “Fucking high school punks.”  He growled harshly, freeing himself of his sheets and stomping up to his feet.  

He swiftly grabbed the aluminum bat from behind his bedroom door and stormed down the hall.  “I swear to Mavis I’m gonna beat the shit--”  Gajeel stopped at his back door, his mouth dropping open at the sight of his back yard and the work shed that used to be his workshop...or what was left of it.  His mouth dropped open and he furiously kicked open the back door, “What the hell!”

Steam and smoke was billowing up from the destroyed shed, originating from a blue, lopsided box.  Particularly, based on what he could read along the top of it, a Police Box.  Gajeel was one hundred percent ready to beat someone’s face in, not be met with a sight that he couldn’t even begin to make sense of.

And it was about to get stranger.

The sound of a door swinging open was followed by movement on the other side of the box.  He prickled then, remembering the delinquents he had definitely expected to find.  His grip tightened on the bat and he brought it up to his side in both hands, stomping forward and opening his mouth to shout. 

But again, he lost his words.  A tiny figure, lit by some light source coming from the box, came around to its side and kicked it.  “Look, I know I made a mess but that doesn’t mean you need to throw a tantrum!” A woman.  The voice was a woman’s.  And as his eyes adjusted he got a good enough look at the individual that the bat dropped from his grip and _clunked_ on the dirt.

Honey eyes, nigh golden, swung to meet him.  Wild blue waves flew around her round, soft face, marred a little with soot.  She couldn’t have been taller than 5 foot, maybe even shorter, and for some reason the shirt and pants she wore looked a few sizes too big.  But disheveled though she was, she was _beautiful_.  Stunningly beautiful.

He had expected to have frightened her, storming out like he did, but she was only surprised and if he wasn’t mistaken, she looked embarrassed.

“Oh dear.”  Was all she could manage.  She glanced at the demolished structure next to the call box, then to the shirtless man standing gobsmacked in the yard.  “That yours?”  She cracked an abashed smile, but he couldn’t respond yet.  “Yep, that’s yours.  I, uh, okay.  What’s the word?”  The girl gripped her chin between her thumb and pointer finger, looking off to the side and smacking her lips.  “Oh, words.  Right, new mouth. New dialect.”  Seemingly remembering he was there, her gaze flew back up to the man and her hand went to the back of her head, ruffling her hair.  “Sorry, keep forgetting you’re there.”  The blunette’s eyes widened dramatically, and her arms flew up into the air.  “Sorry!  That’s the word!  Sorry I crushed your hut!”

“My...hut?”  Gajeel almost whispered, too flabbergasted to do much better than that.   _What the fresh hell is happening?_

“Is that not what it is?”  Levy shot her eyes to the smoldering pile of wood, lifting a brow.  “Wait, what year is it?” 

Finally Gajeel stiffened, having had enough of the nonsense.  “Lady, are you drunk?”

“On?”  Levy knee-jerk responded, before she shook her head quickly.  “No!  I’m just new.”

“At what?”  Gajeel tilted his head.

 “Everything.”  A boom and a loud whirring noise suddenly interrupted their conversation, and she whirled to the blue box.  “No no no!  Stop it!”  Her hands flew up in front of her, gesturing around the box frantically as she circled around the object.

 Gajeel finally took a few steps forward.  Yes, he was completely freaked out, but he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t intrigued.  It was almost secondary to his destroyed property.  “The hell is that thing?”

“My ship!”  Levy popped out from the other side of the call box.

“Oookay, sure.  And my bike is actually a rocket.”

“Can I borrow it?  She’s not going anywhere for a while, I think.”  Levy jabbed her thumb at the box.

 Exasperated, he ran his hand through his black mane.  “Who _are_ you?”

The blunette paused for a minute, looking like she was taking a moment to think.  “Hold on, I know this one.  Things are fuzzy.  New mind and all.  New everything really.  New new Levy.”  The woman suddenly bounced on her heels and snapped her fingers.  “Levy!  Time Lady, at your service.”

 Gajeel cocked his head and raised a brow.  “What is that, a salesperson or somethin’?”

Instead of answering him right away, the blunette stepped up right in front of him.  He looked like he wanted to introduce himself, but she was already moving onto the next subject.  She furrowed her brow, looking him up and down, then looked down at herself.  “What planet am I on?  Phieth?  No,”  She leaned to the side and seemed to be looking directly at his rear.  Gajeel staggered to the side suddenly, his face flaring up crimson.  He opened his mouth to protest, his hands going to shield his butt.  “No tail.”

“The hell you mean no tail!  Of course I don’t have a damn tail!  You’re on Earth, woman!”  Gajeel sputtered.

 Levy frowned.  “Humans aren’t that tall.  Nor quite so adorned.”  A hand flourished to his face, and he assumed she meant his piercings.  She took a couple steps back before fishing into her oversized pocket.  The woman, adding up to the surprises, produced a small silver object that looked almost like a pen.  With a flourish, she held it out in front of her as the tip lit up blue and a distinct screech pierced the night air.  Levy swept it up and down, and Gajeel could only furrow his brow.  She stopped and held the device up in front of her face, and her eyebrows flew upwards.  “You’re human.”  Her golden eyes looked up at him, and she resisted craning her neck.   _Do not tell me this regeneration made me **short.**_

“And that makes you…?”

 “Time Lady, I told you!”  Levy scolded him with a finger and tsked sharply.  “Human with bad ears, I need to start taking notes.”  Swiftly, she hid the silver object back into her pocket.

“So what, you tryna say you’re an alien or something?”  He asked, the skepticism all but dripping from his tone.

“Technically, you’re the alien.”  Levy shot back.

“Ya look just as human as I do.”  Gajeel replied quickly.

“And you look Time Lord.  We were around first.  Sort of.  In a manner of speaking.”  She stopped, furrowing her brow.  “It’s complicated.”  She waved her hand dismissively, “Either way I have, what, at least 800 some years on you.”

“...What.”  He crossed his arms and lifted his brow.  

“I’m...Oh goodness I’ll lose count if I’m not careful.  Last I checked, I’m 842.”

“...Right.  And I’m a dinosaur.”

 “Not likely.  They were much more gullible.”  She answered casually, and again he was at a loss of words to reply to her, and again she blazed forward in the conversation before he could catch up.  A slender finger tapped her cheek, and she looked to him suddenly and straightened herself out.  “Be honest.  How do I look?”

Gajeel’s cheeks flared up again and he looked to the side, his whole body tensing up in discomfort.  “Wh-what kind of question is that?”  He stammered, trying to figure out who could be so bold as to come right up front like that.  Gajeel wasn’t someone unfamiliar with women, it was a question he should have been able to bounce right back with wit.  “Y-ya look like someone who robbed a thrift store.”  He finally forced out, looking out the corner of his eye at her.  

Surprised, Levy seemed to finally look down at herself for the first time and looked aghast.  “Oh dear.  Here I am with this big mess and I look like this.  Just a moment.”  Without giving him a chance to say anything, she whirled on her feet and went around to the other side of the box.  He could hear a door creak open, and she was gone for several minutes.   

“Uh, hello?  Time Lady?”  He called out, hesitantly stepping forward to try and peek around.   _Who the hell...what the hell is happening?_  Her absence started to give him a chance to catch up with just how absurd _all_ of this was.  His gaze drifted to the destroyed shed and a small whimper escaped him.   _It’s fuckin’ ruined._  Which somehow was a little secondary to the mysterious blue box and the stunning creature it had produced.  Even if she seemed to be off her rocker.

“Better!”  Her voice broke him from his thoughts, and she had emerged again.  Just as his jaw dropped open, because an entirely different woman stood before him.  Beaming from the confidence that new attire gave her, Levy shifted her weight from one foot to the other.  Gajeel’s crimson eyes and ran up and down her form, taking in the _very_ drastic change,

A white jacket now hugged her petite frame, accented with yellow seams, that was long enough to reach the backs of her calves.  The collar was raised delicately around her porcelain neck, and gold buttons secured the garment closed over her chest.  White pants, like a second skin, contributed to the unveiling of every little curve the woman possessed, and thigh-high black boots completed her new image.  

“Less...that thing you said.  ‘Thrift store?’”  She asked, tilting her head and running fingers through her wild blue locks, semi-contained by a black headband.  She suddenly made a face, holding her hand over her mouth to stifle a few small coughs.  A distinct wisp of golden smoke escaped her mouth.  “Welp, pardon me.  Still giving off regeneration energy I suppose.”

 _She’s not...she can’t not be…The hell is regeneration?_ “How...where?”  Gajeel lifted a shaky finger, pointing to her and gesturing up and down her figure.

“The wardrobe.”  Levy answered flatly, as though the reply was _obvious_.  

 “Where the hell ya find a wardrobe?”  His eyes flicked to the call box.

“In my ship?  Past the library, if you’re wondering where in relation to the layout.  I’m sure I have something if you need it.”  Her golden eyes looked to his stark shirtlessness, and he could feel himself squirming under her very piercing gaze.  “I think you need it.  You’re missing stuff.”  She gestured to him. 

Trying to offset his own embarrassment, and distract from his near-permanent blush.  “That’s a damn box.  It ain’t a ship, it’s a box.”

“Oi!”  Levy narrowed her eyes and frowned deeply.  “She can hear you, y’know!”  She scolded.  “And she’s already throwing a tantrum, don’t make it worse.  You don’t believe me?  You’re welcome to look.”  Levy took a few steps back, gesturing for him to follow her, and then glanced at the doors.  

Gajeel finally resolved that this was the tone of the night, and that he may as well not waste his energy trying to protest or make sense of it.  He sighed deeply, rolling his shoulders, and decided he would humor her.  Slowly, the man walked around to the other side of the box as she all but hopped out of his way, and he settled his gaze on the doors.  He glanced back at her, brows raised, and with a big smile, she twirled up her hand and snapped her fingers.

The doors to the call box swung open.

A golden light bathed them both, and with absolute wonder, he stared inside.   _No...way…_  Gajeel staggered forward, stepping inside, and found himself within a massive, open room.  What appeared to be a large console sat the center of the room, humming gently and with countless lights rhythmically flashing in random order.  Several hallways exited the area all around the control room, and pulsing golden lights lined the walls all the way up to the ceiling.

His chest heaved, eyes flying around the room and not knowing where to even focus.  It took him a moment, but he stumbled back outside, staring accusingly at the tiny, very amused blunette.  Her hands were clasped behind her back, and she had the brightest grin on her face.   

“Yes?”  She prompted gently.   

He jabbed a demanding finger back at the box, opened his mouth to speak, but only incoherent noises came out.  So he pointed again, hunched forward towards her, and hoped his expression spoke for him.  

Levy, still beaming, leaned forward towards him as well and very much invaded his bubble.  “Something to say?”  She trailed off, tilting her head, “Something about sizes maybe?" 

“It’s….it’s…”  He stammered, and the expectation on Levy’s face was near overbearing.  “Bigger....on the inside.”  The blunette all but mouthed the words along with him, and she leaned back again, straightening up.

“I’ll never get tired of that.”  Levy mused, watching him whirl to charge back inside the box and venture a little farther.  The woman ambled in behind him, amused to see him stepping forward bit by bit with his arms in front of him as though he expected to hit a wall at any time.  She followed him, swinging her steps out side to side.  “Time and Relative Dimension in Space.”  A flabbergasted ‘huh’ answered her.  “TARDIS!  Name of the ship!  Top of the line.  Best thing credits can buy.  Or, if you’re me, best thing you can hope to borrow and definitely plan to return one day.” 

“How the hell…”  Gajeel turned around to demand answers, only to now find her directly in front of him, very close.

“It’s, my,”  She leaned forward onto her tiptoes, and daintily poked him directly on his nose, “ _Ship._ ”  

Gajeel blinked, thoroughly proven wrong.  She had been very honest, and thus far the things she had said were true.  “Where….where do you go?”

As though waiting for the question, Levy sauntered around him, and he found his eyes fixating on the airy way she walked.  How she carried herself like some unearthly creature, which, slowly, he was starting to believe she was.  “Where, when...anywhere and anywhen you could want really.”  The woman stopped in front of the consol, her hands dancing over the controls.  Coyly, she looked over her shoulder, smiling at him and unknowingly leaving him awestruck.  “So, tall metal man...”

“Gajeel!”  He exclaimed, realizing she hadn’t given him a single second edgewise to introduce himself.

“Gajeeeeel~.”  She repeated, flipping a switch, and the humming became louder.   _There we go, feeling better are we?_ She thought, drawing a consoling finger along the controls.  “Right.  So.  All of time and space.  Anything that ever was and ever will be...wanna see it?”

“Time?  And Space?”

“In the name!”  She chirped.

“Fine, dammit.  I’ll bite.”  He gave in.  Completely gave up.  It was all so much, so quickly, he had not much else to lose if he went along with it.  And it _definitely_ had nothing to do with the fact that she was stunning, captivating, enthralling…  “Show me.”

An ecstatic laugh burst from her, and she clapped her hands resolutely.  “Brilliant!”  Levy burst.  “Hold onto your britches, metal man!  She’s still grouchy so it’s gonna be bumpy!”  Levy reached out, grabbed a lever and yanked it down, nearly sending both of them to the floor with the sudden, violent jerk of motion.


	2. Chapter 2

For the second time that night, Gajeel found himself on the floor. Except this time, his back was on a cold metal grate and he had the roiling of motion sickness deep in his gut. With a groan, the large man rolled over and peeked down at what was below him. The pulse of lights remained constant, and a steady flow of steam rose up around him from the belly of the machine.

“Doin’ alright there, Metal Man?” The feminine voice brought him back to the bizarre reality he found himself in. He slowly directed red, unamused eyes to the white-clad woman, crouched near him and staring expectantly. “Told you it would be bumpy. But she’s leveled out; got us in drift now." 

“What,” he swallowed hard, hoisting himself to his feet and using the railing to steady himself, “the _hell_ was that?” the man hissed, looking like he was trying to keep the contents of his stomach in check.

 “Well, we moved.” Levy tilted her head, blue waves cascading over her shoulder and leaving Gajeel distracted for a minute.

He huffed and shook his head, quickly sweeping his own hair from his face. “Moved where?” he all but demanded. “And that wasn’t bumpy; that was death. That was county fair, rusty, uninspected Gravitron ride death.”

“Rude.” Levy frowned, jumping up to her feet and twirling back towards the control console. Her hands took hold of a screen, swinging it around to get a better look. A big smile lit up her face, and she looked over her shoulder at the still, very stunned, man. “Moved about seven thousand light-years, give or take. It changes.”

“We did what?” Gajeel groaned.

“You’re not really good at this, are you?” Levy turned and placed a hand on her hip, “Honestly please try to keep up if you’re coming along with me--”

“ _Woman!_ ” Gajeel interrupted, sounding like he had suddenly reached his limit. “I don’t know what you’re tryin’ to pull with your fair ride of a ‘ship,’ but I’m done.” He steadied himself and straightened up on his feet. “I don’t care what kind of nut ya are, but I’m going home.”

 Levy merely crossed her arms and tilted her head. “Okay.” she replied, tone nonchalant. “Sure thing; sorry to bother you with my fair ride and wild tales and whimsy and, whatnot.” she flourished her hand as she spoke, then gestured to the door and encouraged him to go. There was a twinkle of mirth in her eyes, an expression she tried to hide for the sake of making a point. 

He looked taken aback, having expected an entirely different response. Gajeel stammered, narrowing suspicious eyes at her. “I, I...yeah, fine. Bye.” Indignant and determined, he turned and stomped back towards the exit. Levy stood behind, all but tapping her foot impatiently. Forcefully, Gajeel pushed open the doors and went to take a long stride straight out of the box.

His foot found no purchase on the other side.

Levy giggled at the rather feminine yelp that escaped the man as he frantically grabbed the door frame for dear life. His feet scrambled on the _edge_ , and he finally fall backwards into the ship. His mouth hung open, sputtering unintelligibly, eyes wide. His was the face of a man who had just discovered his own mortality.

The Time Lady casually walked past him, and paused in front of the open doors. “Ahh, couldn’t have parked us in a better spot,” her hand tapped the door frame, “Well done, friend.” After a moment to take in the view, Levy spread her arms and turned on her heels to look back at Gajeel. “I present, to all doubters and nay-sayers in the audience, the Pillars of Creation.” The woman had a look on her face as though she had put the stars there herself… and at this point, so did Gajeel.

Mouth still hanging open, he slowly crawled forward, not the slightest bit confident enough to get back onto his feet. He stopped a few inches from the edge, and stared out into… everything. Magnificent, towering clouds of yellow, gold, and red against a backdrop of blues and greens. The pillars stood regally, silently dwarfing them and standing vigil. Blazing, brilliant stars dotted the scene around the pillars, casting their flickering light upon them. For once in his life, Gajeel felt tiny.

“It’s… space,” Gajeel said breathlessly, “It’s, actually space.” Levy laughed again and took a seat by the opening, dangling one leg out of the TARDIS. Gajeel jumped a little, looking startled and reaching for her as though trying to stop her. “Shorty! You’re gonna…” He looked her over, looked to what was behind her, and back to her again. “How’re ya doin’ that?!”

Levy lifted her brows, unsure of what he meant at first. She tried to follow his line of sight, and perked up with understanding. “Oh! I extended the air shield. We’re fine,” she explained as she lifted her arm and waved her hand out into the nothingness outside to demonstrate. The look of distress on Gajeel’s face was priceless. “You believe me yet?” she asked, looking satisfied first, before another look fell onto her face. “I’m sorry, _what_ did you call me? **_Short?_** ”

“Forget that, we’re in _space!_ ” he exclaimed, the wonder finally pushing the shock off his face. Carefully, he crawled a little closer to the open doors. “Ya weren’t lyin’.”

Levy rolled her eyes. “Better late than never.”

Gajeel looked at her searchingly, trying to look for something - anything that would mark her as anything but the very human woman in front of him. Still, he could find nothing. “So that means ya really aren’t a human, then?”

Levy’s shoulders heaved with a sigh. “Yes, yes, I’ll bend; _I’m_ the alien,” the woman shrugged. “You humans, still so geocentric. And Copernicus worked so hard...”

He furrowed his studded brow, shooting her an annoyed look. “I can deal without the ‘you humans’ thing. Ya barely count as an alien. You’re just a kid.”

“842 years,” Levy shot back. “Ancient.”

Gajeel huffed dismissively, still holding onto disbelief for a few details. There was only so much that could be embraced in one night. “Sure thing, Shorty. Eight-hundred-whatever. What planet are ya from? Mars?”

Levy blew an offended raspberry and looked utterly insulted. “A Martian! Goodness, no. A Martian wouldn’t be caught dead wearing white.”

“Well, what planet are ya from, then?” Gajeel pressed. 

There was a brief, loaded pause before Levy answered, “I come from a place called Gallifrey.”

“There more of ya out here? Should we be worried about an invasion?” Gajeel held his hands up at the last word, feigning fear with an amused smirk pulling at the corners of his mouth.

There was a quiet, heavy moment, and the jovial brightness previously on her features faded away. Levy’s golden eyes met his, calm but piercing. The nebula provided them with light, and cast her in a glow that dried his mouth and constricted his throat. In her twinkling irises, for the first time of the night, he felt like he could see the centuries. Each fleck of gold was the rise and fall of civilizations; in her pupils were the birth and the collapse of stars. In her eyes were not only her years, but the hurt of an unhealed wound that he had evidently just picked at. He felt like he wasn’t in the presence of some mad woman that crash landed in his garden, but instead someone that had experienced more than he could comprehend. Her air humbled him just as profoundly as the nebula outside; Gajeel wasn’t someone used to that sensation. The man had a heart of iron and a personality to match; Gajeel Redfox was not a humble man.

In an instant it was gone, and her face lit up again with pushed amusement. A gentle smile pulled at her lips before she looked back out to the nebula. “No. No invasions to worry about,” she forced a laugh with her words. “There’s just me.” It seemed like something she had said before, something rehearsed. 

Gajeel tilted his head a little. “Wait, so you’re by yourself?” his gaze followed hers to the silent towers outside. “Out here?” How very big, and how very quiet for someone so small.

“‘Course not!” Levy suddenly bounced to her feet, teetering so close to the edge that Gajeel had yet another near heart attack. She leaned over him, beaming, and poked him square in his forehead. “I have you.”

He leaned back from her, despite something in him telling him to do the opposite. “How d’ya figure?” Gajeel found himself asking for the sake of humoring her, rather than protesting immediately to the fact that he has essentially been kidnapped into space.

Levy tilted her head and gave him a look of pity: a look that one would give another person that was taking way too long to figure things out. Or someone who was just playing dumb. “Because we’re looking at that,” her eyes motioned to the world outside, “We are watching the birth of stars, from a structure that is itself dying by the light of the very stars it creates. And I think you know by now that there is _so much more._ ” She winked. “You’ve barely been able to take your eyes off the pillars. Those are just quiet sentinels. There are _worlds_ out there, Gajeel. All of time and space; things you could never even imagine.” As she spoke, Gajeel felt himself drifting, swept up in the passion of her voice and the way her eyes sparkled as distinctly as the stars. “That all being said, the only thing to do would be to properly ask you: do you want to come with me?”

The man was powerless to answer right away. His mind was in a haze, working overtime to make sure he was fully caught up to everything. This petite, enthralling woman has swept him up in a night, showed him the stars, and to top it all off: she was asking him to come with her. “Why?” Gajeel finally got out. “Why me?”

“Well, I did destroy your shed; consider it an extended apology. And I don’t believe in coincidence,” Levy shrugged before a softer smile graced her features, “and the wonders of the universe are best when shared,” she admitted. It can get very quiet in space, and while trekking along decade after decade was something that Levy was well adjusted to, there was a certain magic in being able to look at a nebula she had seen thousands of time before like it was new again. Simply because the companion she had with her could look at it with such awe and wonder. It was impossible to not feel the same along with them. 

“What’s the catch? This kind of thing doesn’t just happen,” Gajeel asked, raising a brow. If he could cling to maybe a little skepticism, then maybe he could feel a little less insane.

“The catch for freedom?” Levy tilted her head and pinched her bottom lip thoughtfully, unsure how to answer best. “It’s dangerous,” she replied first, “and there’s a set of rules and level of responsibility that comes with time travel.”

Gajeel opened his mouth to answer, but was silenced by a sudden memory that forced his gaze downwards. Well, more of a scent. He recalled the smell of exhaust and rust, of old metal and the feeling of grease on his hands. Gajeel turned over his right palm and looked at the small burn scar there, able to recall the searing sensation and seeing large hands wrapping a bandage around it. A gruff voice had only just started to manifest in the memory, when he looked up suddenly to the woman. _All of time and space, huh?_

“I’m in,” Gajeel finally replied, his tone gruff, which brought an excited clap and beaming smile from Levy, who snapped her fingers to miraculously close the doors to the phonebox. “Now what’re these ‘rules’ ya mentioned?”

Levy’s expression became more serious, and she held up her hand to raise a finger after each guideline, “One, you cannot change fixed events. Two, no interfering with your own timeline. And three, what I say, goes.” She smirked then, leaving Gajeel unsure of how serious she was.

 _Time travel is just one big playground, right? You can do whatever you want as long as you don’t do anything too big,_ he thought. “Sure thing, shorty,” he replied with a toothy grin.

A deep, offended frown creased Levy’s features, “Four, stop calling me that or I’ll drop you in the Dark Ages for a week.” Levy spun on her feet in the manner that seemed to be her signature, and waltzed back to the console. “Now, we need to fix your attire. Can’t have you looking like a half-nude beastie.” Gajeel turned beet red, shifting uncomfortably. He tried to protest, but Levy was already speaking over him. “The wardrobe is down that hall on the right!” She swung up her arm, pointing to one of the open corridors. “Pick out something you like; I have something for everyone.” He eyes shifted to the console, and she patted it softly, “No games, friend. _Actually_ take him to the wardrobe.”

 “What was that?”

“Nothing!” Levy practically sang, looking over her shoulder and pointing down the hall again. “Chop chop, off you pop, we have places to be and things to see!”

Gajeel blinked, before he finally hauled himself up to his feet and glanced down at himself. He swallowed hard, aware again of the fact that he only had a pair of sweatpants to his name at this moment. Skeptical or not, he made his way to the corridor, eager to get into something that covered him a little more. _Especially_ with how frustratingly vulnerable he found himself to be in front of the small, twirly woman.

There were no real identifiers in the hallway, but somehow he felt like he knew where to go and knew to pick the second – not the first – door on his right. What he found inside was not a room he would ever use the word ‘wardrobe’ to describe. It was massive, with a spiral staircase up the middle to access level upon level of walls of clothes. _Where the hell am I even supposed to start?_

There was no organization to the types of clothes in the room, and he found both male and female clothing mixed in together. Of all sizes. He tried looking through and was, by luck, able to find a pair of black jeans that fit. But after fifteen minutes of digging through clothing and ball gowns and period clothing that were _not_ appropriate for him, his patience ran out.

“ _Oiii! Shrimp!_ ” he turned and bellowed, only to have his heart nearly leap out of his chest when he saw her standing in the doorway.

She winced and plugged a finger into her ear. “My goodness, do humans always need to shout so much?”

“H-how long have you been there?” Gajeel stammered, his blush returning with a vengeance. He found himself with a deep resentment for how pathetic he felt, and how easy it was for someone so small to turn him into a stuttering mess.

“Not long,” Levy waved her hand, her eyes torturously moving up and down his form, “you haven’t made much progress,” she noted.

Gajeel huffed defensively, wrinkling his nose in frustration, “I can’t find a damn thing in here, this is useless.”

Levy shook her head and walked up towards him. She placed a hand onto his chest and pushed him aside. Or rather, Gajeel acquiesced when she tried to move him. He raised a brow, watching her ascend the stairs nimbly with her white coat trailing behind her. She barely seemed to look as she grabbed articles from the racks on her way up, looping them over her arm. The woman paused finally, grabbed a large, black item, and then made her way back down as quickly as she went up. 

She shoved all the garments into Gajeel’s arms with a smile, “Here, options.” 

Gajeel blinked as she made her way back out of the room, and once more left him with privacy.

The Time Lady found herself back in front of the TARDIS console, staring thoughtfully at the rising and falling cylinders at its center. “Ah… really can’t stand to be alone for too long, can I…” she mumbled, barely loud enough to hear over the hum of the sentient machine. It was selfish, to the highest degree; she spent her years uprooting the lives of people she found. Levy had been doing this for a long time, and yes: there had been many friends along the way. The memories of those adventures warmed her, but there was a painful consequence to being drawn to something as temporary as humans. They were such a fascinating race, so full of ambition and so complicated in their understanding of the world...and so easy to impress. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t love the looks of awe when she started to show off. It was self-indulgent, and she knew.

It was also fleeting. But Levy couldn’t resist; she had stopped trying ages ago.

Her thoughts were broken by the loud footfalls of heavy boots and she turned, putting on a smile at her new companion, “Finally!” To her satisfaction, he looked comfortable and borderline pleased with the clothing options.

 He kept the black jeans, and had chosen a red, snug-fitting shirt that was tight across his broad shoulders but just loose enough over the abdomen to leave room to guess. Though to be fair, he left little else to Levy’s imagination over the course of the night. He had found a red and white hair scarf on his own, and tied it into his hair to feel as much of his rebellious mane out of his face; something that might come in handy with his new chosen venture.   Gajeel rolled his shoulders and pulled at the black jacket that completed his new attire. “This stuff ain’t half bad,” Gajeel commented. 

The blue-haired woman beamed at him, and already began to dance her fingers across the controls. “Much better, very presentable,” she nodded curtly. The TARDIS started to hum loudly, and the ground beneath their feet began to shake.

Gajeel urgently grabbed one of the railings, and could feel the nausea begin to return, “Dammit, can’t this this fly a little smoother?” 

Levy, with a touch of cruel amusement, flipped another lever, “Nope! Part of the charm!” she replied, sending them off once more.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter I pulled a lot of inspiration from the "Witcher" aesthetic. I am by no stretch a history person, and am much more an images person.

“So where did you say you wanted to go, Mr. Redfox?” Levy called out over the humming and lurching of her ship. 

Gajeel took several moments to answer, trying desperately not to hurl all over the grated floor in front of him. “P-prove this damn thing is a time machine,” he swallowed heavily and took a deep breath, “Take me back ten years. Where you found me.”

Levy puffed her cheeks, “All of time and space and you pick a decade in your own home town.” With one hand she spun a dial, and with the other she flipped a lever, “But if you insist.”

 The lurching changed distinctly, but was no less terrible on the man’s gut. A loud wail came from the center console, and he watched the blue-haired woman tilt her head. As before, the heavy boom signified the arrival and a thankful end to the nauseating shaking. Levy bounded to the other side of the console, and took a moveable screen in her hands. “This isn’t... My dear, I get a new face and you still can’t be bothered to just take me where I want to go?” The Tardis was silent, of course. No answer was provided to her, as it never was. There always seemed to be a good _reason_ for the places her ship took them, but it would be nice to always just _go_ where she requested.

“Well Gajeel, funny story.”

“The hell is funny about this?” the man barked back at her, just barely pulling himself to his feet again. He hunched over the railing with a groan, calming his stomach with more deep breaths.

“Well, actually, nothing. Strange how often that’s said when the following story is not funny. Usually means something’s gone wrong,” Levy rambled, taking a glance at the screen in front of her before bounding around the console towards the doors. “We haven’t landed in Magnolia.”

Gajeel grumbled and turned his burgundy eyes to the woman, “Then where--”

 “We also haven’t gone back 10 years,” She stopped in front of the doors and turned back to him with smile, “Woops? She does that sometimes. I still promise adventure, don't you fret. I'm sure there's… something worthwhile.”

 “Woman…” he growled. Gajeel finally found his balance and stood without the help of the railing, facing her fully. “Where are we?”

“When,” she corrected. “Sometime in the thirteenth century, abouts. She still a little fuzzy on the coordinates. Earth, at least. Solid ground,” she quipped, and with both hands behind her back, she unlatched the doors and flung them open.

The man’s gaze flew upwards from her to the golden-lit scenery beyond her. His mouth hung open slightly as he stepped forward, moving past her, and stepping carefully outside. He tested the ground first, and when sure he wasn’t going to fall through some illusion, proceeded out into the clearing. The earth was plush with fresh grass and moss, and pines towered over them, allowing yellow evening light to trickle through. The breeze moved sweet, crisp air past him, and the trees sung in response.

Levy came up next to him and inhaled deeply. “Ah, fresh air,” she commented, looking to her stunned companion. A smile lit up her face at his expression of wonder, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. It really never got old for her. “Well, what d’you think?”

“It’s real,” he breathed.

“Well of course it is! What do you think I am, an illusionist?” Levy pouted, her previous mirth completely deflated by his continued lack of faith. “I showed you space. And yet, you still doubt me. Tsk tsk, Metal Man.”

“I doubt you because you can’t drive,” Gajeel shot back, quietly disappointed that he hadn’t been taken where he hoped. Still, this wasn’t a total loss. The man had to admit that he was, definitely, impressed. He watched the indignant protest rise in her, and he lifted his hand. “Fine fine, lead the way, Shrimp.”

“I’m leaving you here. I told you I would if you called me that,” Levy shot back, popping a finger into her mouth and then holding it up into the air. After a moment, she spun on the balls of her feet and declared, “This way.”

Gajeel squinted in a ‘how the hell do you figure’ manner, before shoving his hands into his pockets and following after her. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before he noticed a worn road, cutting through the foliage.

Levy quickly glanced both ways, noticing movement and a thinning of the trees in the distance: signs of civilization. “She doesn’t always go where I want but she always brings me places I need to be. So here begs the question, why are we needed here?”

Gajeel tilted his head, “Needed?”

“To fix things, I fix things. Most times. And my Tardis brings me to places that need fixing.” She glanced back to him, “The universe is a big place and time is a strange thing. Sometimes things run amok. Things come to be where they shouldn’t.” She could tell he was taking a moment to process what she was telling him.

“But we’re in the past and these things have already happened. Can’t ya just leave them alone?” Gajeel asked, trying to pace himself next to her.

Levy laughed lightly, shaking her head, and turned her golden eyes onto him, “When I crashed into your hut, what did you do?” 

Gajeel was caught off guard by the question and stopped midstep for just a second, “You know what I did.”

The Time Lady sighed, stopping with him and pivoting to face him. Gajeel felt his breath catch in his throat as the light caught her waves of hair first, then her eyes, but it was a split moment before she started speaking again and he was snapped out of it, “Yes but, it was a choice. Meaning you had options. Yes? What was your other choice? To not come out at all? To let someone else handle it? Then where would we be. What would our timelines have been?” She tilted her head, hair shifting with her. “Think, there is a world full of events where you and I never meet,” she offered a lopsided smile, feigning pity, “Tragic though that is.”

Gajeel crinkled his nose, following along with what she was saying, but not necessarily her train of thought and where she was going with it.

Levy smiled at his alert expression, glad she had found one that could keep up. “Now imagine every moment, in every day, is like that. Every decision spinning a web of possible timelines,” While speaking she had lifted her hands, palms towards him, and spread them slowly apart. “Now, smack that web up and roll it into a ball,” She slapped her hands together, and started to walk again, clasping her hands behind her back. “Despite the painfully inaccurate name, timelines are neither _linear_ nor, concrete _._ ”

He blinked, hopping a little to keep following her and curled a skeptical lip while furrowing his brow, “I’ll bite; how could you know that, if you only ever see what _you_ do?”

She laughed, almost bitterly, “Wrong.” Gajeel pulled his head back a little, surprised by the quick answer. “I see every possibility, everything past and present and what might be. It’s a mess of everything at once and makes it terribly difficult to focus on the present when you can feel the literal turn of the universe.” Her gaze was fixed forward, staring into the distance. 

For once, Gajeel had nothing to say back to her, but wished she would look at him so he didn’t feel so, disconnected all of the sudden. After everything that had happened, he was inclined to believe her, but it was still difficult to wrap his head around. He felt he was beginning to understand what this sort of travel was supposed to be like, but she… she was still a nebulous concept.

After a long moment, Levy spoke up again, “Which is why I prefer to let is all muddle up as much as possible so I can enjoy just a little surprise in my life. So let’s figure out why we’re here, hmm?” She flashed a smile at the half-stunned man, finally making eye contact again, and forged forward.

The trees continued to thin, showing their passage into what looked like some kind of settlement. Further down, the roadway opened up, lined with stone and wood homes. To their left, a large plot of land dotted with stone tablets: a cemetery. Levy stopped, and Gajeel didn’t notice until he was a few paces in front of her. Handfuls of flowers were placed at the bases of several, but it was the statue in the middle that stopped her. She knew it wasn’t, the shape and size weren't quite right, but still, the angelic figure gave her pause. To be sure, she pulled out the silvered pen and pointed it. The tip lit blue, screeched, and with a flourish she flicked it and brought it up in front of her face, deliberately keeping it in the line of sight between her and the figure. She released her breath and placed the pen back into her coat pocket.

Gajeel came up next to her, glancing at the statue and then back to her. “Uh, what’s that about?”

 Levy shook her head abruptly, slowly took her yes off the statue and responded, “Playing it safe.” She knew he wanted more than that, but she kept walking. There was no reason to expose him to that part of the universe just yet. Ideally, ever.

Gajeel peered searchingly into the small cemetery, but couldn’t see anything that looked out of the ordinary to him. Still not entirely convinced that the woman wasn’t completely insane, he huffed and trudged after her.

Chickens darted across their paths, avoiding them, and as each person caught sight of them they looked about ready to do the same. Conversations fizzled out, and people slowly gravitated away from them. He briefly met gazes with a woman who watched them with an intensity he couldn’t characterize, be it apprehension or utter disdain, with her hand clasped tightly to a pendant around her neck. The reactions weren’t lost on Gajeel, and he glanced to Levy but she didn’t seem remotely bothered by it. Rather, she seemed perfectly comfortable with it. _I doubt it’s the first time,_ he thought.

“Do ya have a plan or are we just gonna walk around and scare people?” Gajeel asked finally.

“Innkeep,” Levy replied quickly, her eyes searching each building for something specific.

“Come again?”

Levy rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. “Oh Metal Man, _keep up._ Innkeepers are the heart, and the ears. Any year. Innkeepers here, bartenders in the present. Same thing minus the on site drunk rooms. Need something answered, or even need what the mumblings are, ask at the nearest inn,” she explained, her gaze finally fixing on a sign in the shape of a rearing horse that swung from hinges over an entryway. “Ah-ha, here.”

Gajeel lifted his brows and wanted to ask about her total nonchalance, or obliviousness, to everyone’s apparent opinion of their presence. She strolled up the wooden steps and went to push open the heavy door. As though being snapped back to attention, he quickly moved forward and slapped his palm against the door, just over her head. The Time Lady shot him a perplexed look as he pushed open the door for her, motioning his head for her to move forward. “What?” he grumbled, unsure why the gesture would be a surprise to her.

She hummed to herself, looking like a thought had just crossed her mind, but she had already filed it away. Levy proceeded into the strangely quiet hall, full with people crowded at tables with hot meals and frothing mugs. In the back corner was the counter--to which people went to and fro with their orders--that she was looking for.

Just like outside, as she casually strode forward, attention slowly fixed upon her and her tall companion, Now in an enclosed space, Gajeel found himself prickling with awareness to the situation, and without realizing, he quickened his pace just enough to remain close behind the small woman, unbothered though she may be by it all. 

Not to her surprise, as soon as the innkeeper noticed them, she immediately furrowed a brow and barked out an indecipherable word. The sudden movement of a straw-haired man in leather armor gave her an idea of what was said, and she smirked slightly. By the time she and Gajeel had approached the counter, what noise there was in the hall had died down to whispers, and the armored man was in between them and the counter. His hand rested conspicuously atop the pommel of a sheathed sword.

“Evening,” Levy greeted casually. Her complete disregard for the obvious tone of the situation was surprising to Gajeel.

“What’s your business?” the man replied gruffly, his eyes scanning up and down Levy and then lingering on Gajeel, sizing him up.

“Food, ideally,” she chirped. “We’ve come a long way and my dear companion needs a hefty supply to maintain his height,” she had to stifle a laugh at the barely audible growl that rumbled from him, “Might we partake? I ensure you I can pay.”

“Don’t appreciate strangers around here. Ain't seen folk that look like you two neither. Where’re your papers?” The guard demanded, while the innkeeper watched on apprehensively, arms crossed.

 With the confrontational tone, Gajeel inched a little closer to Levy and tensed, narrowing his eyes at the man. The shift wasn't missed by the astute woman, and she lifted her hand up to stay him. From the corner of her eye, she gave him a knowing look to try and calm him, before focusing back on the guard. She reached into her coat and dug around a little before pulling out a small leather, folded object, akin to a wallet. Levy held it up in front of her and flipped it open to reveal a paper inside.

The guard stared at it a moment, before his brows rose in surprise. “That’s the Baron’s seal, that is.” His hand dropped quickly from his sword and he eased backwards just slightly. “Forgive the disrespect,” he added with heavy sincerity. Gajeel leaned forward over Levy, trying to get a look at what she could have shown the guard. Briefly, Levy glanced at it herself, giving him a glimpse. Interestingly, he saw exactly what the guard and innkeeper saw.

From behind him the innkeep leaned to the side and peered around him, mirroring his expression when she noticed the seal as well. “Well I'll be damned. Weren’t expectin’ no men… or a Lady from the Baron’s keep. But all considered it’s about damn time he gave a rat’s arse about his people.” The woman, whose hair was pulled back into a frizzy braid, leaned forward on her elbows over the counter. 

“All considered?” Levy probed, before perking a little as though forgetting something, “How rude. You know my name, this rugged beastie here is Gajeel, my escort for travel.” She felt his intense gaze boring into her, but she deliberately avoided looking at him. Still, amusement wrinkled the corners of her eyes. “The Baron told me briefly what I'm to investigate but why don't you fill me in miss…?”

“Trea. The muscle is Warner,” the woman replied. The inn itself started to return to its initial volume, having witnessed the diffusing of the tension as Warner stepped fully aside and leaned back against the counter. “Flashy dress for a scout but the hell I know from our corner of the world,” Trea shrugged, “just glad he finally decided do somethin’ about the stupors.”

Levy nodded, “How much worse has it gotten?” It was clear to Gajeel that she knew exactly what to say, and that she had done this before. It sounded effortless, calm, and it worked.

“Worse,” Warner replied gruffly.

“People’re dropping like flies. Just three nights past we found another possessed with the fits, just in the middle of the road like the others,” Trea added.

“Sure they ain’t just coming down with the plague or some shit?” Gajeel finally found his voice and, much to Levy’s dismay, it was about as insensitive as she had hoped he _wouldn’t_ be.

Trea shot him a harsh look, brown eyes narrowed. “We ain’t stupid, wouldn’t have sent so many letters for help for an imbalance of the humors,” she replied bitterly, “Every person has been accounted for as being entirely healthy not hours before. They’re always found outside, at night, in tremors speakin’ nonsense. After the fits subside they’re just… empty. Not coughin, wheezin, or feverish. They just lie in their beds until they pass of the hunger or thirst. The people’re fearin’ a curse.”

 Levy nodded knowingly, tucking her paper back into her coat. “Looks like we’ve got work to do. Might you have a room for us for a few nights? In exchange for the Baron’s interest and generosity?”

Warner looked to the innkeep, who looked at them thoughtfully for a moment. Finally her gaze settled on Gajeel and she jabbed a finger at him, “Long as you keep him quiet. I know his kind and I don’t like the look of him. Nothin’ but trouble.”

Gajeel prickled and moved forward, before a tiny finger shot up in front of his mouth and rested daintily against his lips, stopping him in his tracks. He looked down incredulously to the tiny woman, and couldn’t help but be surprised she could reach high enough to shush him, which in itself was enough to get her the desired outcome.

“Of course. I’m well-versed in his handling, I assure you,” Levy replied brightly, feeling him take her hand in his and pushing it down away from him before releasing her.

“Then it’s settled. Come to me when you’re ready and I’ll show you which is yours,” she reached under the counter and produced a brass key, handing it over to Levy.

“Thank you. We’ll do our best to be on our way as soon as possible,” the Time Lady smiled reassuringly to the woman.

“Hush. Have a seat at a table and I’ll bring you somethin’. The Baron may be slow to care about his people but he always sends compensation when it’s due.” And with that Trea turned, disappearing into a doorway in the back through which savory scents had been wafting since they entered.

* * *

 

“Ya gonna explain how you knew what to show them to let us stay?” Gajeel asked, staring down at the roasted chicken in front of him, unsure if he trusted it enough yet. Even if Levy had already dug into hers.

 The Time Lady tilted her head a little, before humming, “You mean this?” with her free hand, she pulled out the paper she had shown earlier and held it up.

Gajeel scowled, leaning forward slightly, “This some kind of joke? It’s blank.” It was the same leather holder, the same sized card, but now there was nothing on it. It was just a simple piece of paper.

She laughed, marveling at the things that never got old, no matter how many times she had done this song and dance. “Psychic paper. Shows the viewer what I need them to see. You saw the Baron’s seal because that was what would get us in here. I have nothing I need to show you, so you see nothing.” She turned her eyes to his untouched plate and pursed her lips a little. “Just eat it, you won’t die. Everyone else seems fine enough. Wash it down with the ale. You can have mine too, I don’t care for the taste.”

He frowned at her, glancing around the room, before finally caving and picking up the mug. He lifted his brows after taking a sip and hummed, _It ain’t bad. Here’s hoping it doesn’t kill me. But if there’s one way to go…_ he thought. “So. Is this what you do? Pick up weird rumors and figure them out?”

Levy knit her brow a little, sitting up straighter. “What an unfortunate oversimplification. How little you must think of me.”

“I hardly know you.” Gajeel shot back, “You gotta work for the praise, Shrimp." 

She shifted with a heavy intake of breath, closing her eyes for just a moment to center her patience. He showed no signs of leaving the nickname behind, which meant she might as well start to adjust to it. _I used to be tall._ When she opened her eyes again, she glanced around the room. “So. As simple you think it might be, we do need to figure out what’s killing people,” she said, taking another bite of her meal. “We’re part of it now, and we’re stuck until we figure it out.

 “And how do we do that?”

Levy smirked, twirling their key around her finger. “We shack up here until the screaming starts.”


	4. Chapter 4

Gajeel balked when the door opened in front of him and he was able to see the room on the other side. The very small room, and the large, single bed. He opened his mouth to speak, but Levy has already chimed in ahead of him, “Cozy!”

“Are ya kiddin’? Where the hell am I supposed to sleep?” Gajeel protested, his gaze pointedly moving from one corner of the room to the other. Two oil-burning sconces cast their yellow light from mounted positions on the back wall, framing the corners of the bed. The smells of the food and mead still wafted in from the main hall, but the smell of wood and must still prevailed.

Infuriatingly, Levy shrugged, “Wherever you want. There’s room for us both, or you can sleep on the floor.”

The nonchalance of her statement set his cheeks ablaze. It was clear she had already determined she would sleep nowhere but the bed as she pranced across the room and plopped onto the straw mattress. “The floor then, hell,” he grumbled.

“Whatever suits you, it’s _your_ back. We need to be up early; the innkeep agreed to take us to see the last victim. Apparently she’s still alive.” Levy explained.

 “Exciting,” Gajeel mumbled, mirthless. “This is turning out to be real peachy, y’know.” The displeasure on his tone was tangible.

Levy shrugged again, “I said it would be dangerous, not glamorous.”

He glared at her for the noncommittal answer, but sat heavily on the floor at the foot of the bed.   “I’m still waiting for some aliens or somethin’. I’m sure you draw them like a damn magnet.”

Levy laughed dryly, leaning her back against the headboard. “Little bit of both really. They either seek me or leave the galaxy, there’s little in between.”

Gajeel turned his head, regarding her from the corner of his eye with palpable skepticism, “You’re kiddin’, you want me to believe you can send _anything_ runnin’, let alone some alien?”

The woman huffed, puffing her cheeks pridefully. Still, for the insult, she deigned him an answer, “Not all alien races are created equal. Oods love me, for example. Mutual, really. Love an Ood,” the perplexed, arched brow from him drew a genuine laugh from her, “Atraxi and Sycorax, on the other hand, not my biggest fans. Scatter like roaches when I enter the system. We’ve had bad run-ins way back, so I’ve got a reputation.”

Gajeel leveled a prying look at her, as though waiting for her to start laughing and dismiss it as a joke. But she merely looked back, waiting for a response for him, face completely serious. He was halfway inclined to believe her, given what he had seen already. Still, he felt that doubt was not a wise instinct to abandon just yet. “That sounds completely made up. But sure,” he turned away from her, leaning his head back on the mattress.

“Eh, you’ll see soon enough. Give it time. I’ll do my best to keep you alive until then,” she teased, rewarded by a visible tensing of his shoulders. “My my, how easy to provoke you are, beastie.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Don’t call me shrimp.” The responding huff told her that wasn’t going to happen, and she let out a deep sigh. “Get some sleep, then. You can torment me more tomorrow.”

After a few quiet moments, Gajeel glanced back again to see her with her eyes closed. She hadn’t laid down, but rather sat like she was before with her eyes shut and arms crossed over her stomach. She looked peaceful, but still alert. He took in that image; he’d seen it before. Gajeel didn’t always keep the best company, his father had drawn the same ilk when he was younger. None of them were terrible, by the world’s standards, but in the time he had spent around all of them, more than one slept the way she did when they weren’t in their own homes.

It was a light sleep, a position that could put them to their feet in moments if they needed to be. A sleep that only people who let danger, real danger, into their lives.   _What the hell am I doing here?_ He finally thought. Truly, he couldn’t quite figure out why he had decided to come with her and only settled on curiosity over and over. Here he was, out of his time, with a woman he didn’t know, trying to figure out what mystery force was killing people. By all accounts agreeing to come here was a stupid choice. And yet, he found himself trusting her.

* * *

 

Levy tried to let Gajeel sleep as long as he had wanted, which as it turns out, was halfway through the morning. He had fallen over onto his side and sounded like a slumbering bear, with no signs of waking anytime soon. And there were only so many strolls she could take through her thoughts and so many trinkets in her too-big pockets. Finally restlessness caught up to her and she bounced to her feet, walking around the foot of the bed and casually dropped her psychic paper on his face with a heavy _slap_.

With a choke he sputtered awake, wiping at his face as he shot upright. Wild eyes flew around the room, before settling on her angelically innocent face. “You’re awake!” she quipped, smiling brightly enough to match the morning light flooding the room. 

“Fucking…” Gajeel growled deeply, slowly angling his head towards her. He leveled cold, unwavering eyes at her, before tightly gripping her wallet and tossing it up at her. She caught it with ease, keeping that smile on him before she sought breakfast out in the main hall.

It was was mid afternoon by the time Trea had found the time to bring them, personally, to the healer’s residence. She had mentioned the woman, already on edge, wouldn’t see them without her introducing them.

That was as far as Trea was willing to go for them however, leaving promptly after the introduction, and not daring to spare a glance at the motionless woman on the cot.

Levy broke the silence first. “How long?” 

“She has three days, maybe four,” the nurse replied, taking her attention away from dabbing at the woman’s forehead to regard Levy and her companion. “It’s the thirst that takes them first.”

“Where did you find her? How?” Levy pressed, taking her too-serious eyes away from the girl, who could not have been more than seventeen.

“Same as the others,” the tone was tired, with an even apathy cultivated by doing her kind of work for too long. “Outside, at night. She had gone out to river for water, judging by the bucket, but she had gone no farther than a few houses, where someone found her, clawing at her neck as if it was aflame before she became, this.” The nurse gestured to girl, turning away from them to dip her rag in the bucket of warm water and wring it out. “We cannot give them water for fear they’ll drown, and cannot give food for fear they’ll choke. Medicine is thus equally impossible. I can clean her, warm her, and moisten her eyes. And bid her to the other side when it comes.”

Levy was gravely quiet for several seconds, glancing at Gajeel. His eyes were steeled on the motionless girl, her own blankly staring at the thatched roof, all color gone from them. She waited until he caught her own gaze, and she angled her head pointedly.

His brows twitched, but he understood her deliberate quiet. For whatever reason, she wanted him to speak. The realization of being tested sat sourly with him, but regardless, Gajeel weighed his words. “How quickly do people find ‘em?”

The Time Lady’s face twitched with restrained approval before the nurse answered them, brows knit as though she had never thought of it, “Immediately. They are still in the fits when they come to me, and the fits always last the same amount of time.”

“Someone different brings them to you each time, I imagine?” Levy probed, and the quick shift in Gajeel’s posture told her that he followed her train of thought. 

“Yes.”

Levy didn’t even need her to affirm it, and already had her next question out before the woman had finished, “Who brought this one?”

The nurse turned now, regarding them both with green eyes narrowed, not in ill will, but having been caught off guard by such an inquiry. It took her a moment to remember, “The herbalist. Lana. She lives...in the house with the garden, on the eastern side. She grows rosemary, along her fence.” 

Golden eyes fell on Gajeel quickly, before she inclined her head to the woman in thanks, “We appreciate your time.” The finality in her tone was clear, and Gajeel followed suit as she turned on her heel to leave. Once the wooden door thudded shut behind her, she glanced sidelong at him. “Lives are saved by asking the right questions. Lesson one.” Gajeel huffed at her haughty tone, but she ignored the indignance. “What’s your conclusion?”

The man stopped, looking down his slightly crinkled nose at her. He wanted to fire something back at her, but the question wasn’t a taunt. It was an opportunity. It was an indication that he wasn’t a guest, or a tag-along. If he didn’t know better, he’s think she was offering him the chance to be an asset. “The key is in whoever finds ‘em. It’s too convenient that someone gets to ‘em right away each time. Other’n that, I don’t know.” 

Levy’s answering smile was far more satisfying than he had expected it to be and it warmed something that surprised him. “So what do we do?”

Gajeel curled his lip, “Sounds like we need to find Lana.” The Time Lady clapped a hand against his bicep with a bright smile, heading down the road due east. It took him a second before he followed after her. “If it’s a different person each time, what is doing this to them?”

 “Aah, that’s the question isn’t it? I have a feeling when we find this herbalist we will get a clue,” she replied.

True enough, thick bushes of rosemary marked the residence, but no one was within. They tried walking the perimeter, peering into the windows, but the inside was quiet; dark. Slow, deliberate circling around the house yielded nothing, including anyone returning to the house while they were there. “Interesting. That our key player isn’t here.” Levy mused, glancing back at Gajeel. His furrowed brow mirrored her sentiment. What he did not expect, however, was her to stop in front of the door and pull out that screeching silver object she had used several times before. She pointed it to the handle of her door, followed by a soft screech, and then a click. Quickly, she pocketed the item, and pushed open the door to stride inside with the baffled man hanging back.

“...How.” Not a question. But demanding an answer.

“Sonic pen,” Levy replied, scanning her eyes over the cold room. The fireplace was cold, dead. The table wasn’t clean, withering herbs left scattered. Like someone left in a hurry and hadn’t returned to clean up. “I have never,” Levy started from the center of the room, “encountered an herbalist, alchemist, or any -ist that would leave their wares out like this to waste. They are disheveled, chaotically intelligent folk but all their ingredients and goods, while a mess to us, are safely stored as they need to be. This is the space of someone who left without planning to. Someone--”

“Who left to go after someone. Looks like someone hasn’t taken care of place for more than a few days.” Gajeel offered, glancing to her for approval. And he got it.

“We need to find out who’s seen her last.” Levy declared, heading outside and closing the door behind them both. The two returned to the inn, hoping to ask Trea, their center of information, where the herbalist might be, and who had seen her last.

When they returned there, however, they found another woman behind the counter. “She’s out for the afternoon,” was the curt answer. The glance exchanged between Levy and Gajeel spoke everything that needed to be said, and they were completely on the same page.

The man started to say something, but Levy cut in first, “We’ll have whatever is fresh for the day, Trea is aware of our bill.” The pleasantness in her voice was clipped, hiding something that she wasn’t ready to address at that moment. Gajeel held his tongue until they were seated at a table, away from the others. “It knows we’re here,” Levy said, all the light having left her tone. It was a declaration, and a warning. One more for awareness than to frighten him away.

 Gajeel clasped his hands in front of him on the table, leaning forward onto his forearms. “So what do we do now? If we don’t even know what _it_ is?”

 Levy ran her hands through her hair, the mirth of discovery having left her features. “Like I said, we wait until the screaming starts.”

* * *

 

It wasn’t a flair for the dramatic, and it wasn’t something she’d said just to rile him. Because after the sun had set and patrons started to flock the inn, screaming did start. It was dull at first, almost quiet enough to be mistaken for something else. But then it grew louder, and Levy, who had been staring absentmindedly at her food, shot to her feet. Ready,

“Everyone stay inside. By order of the Baron, stay put, and do not come outside,” Levy declared with an authority, a steadiness in her voice that took Gajeel off guard. And astonishingly, as though word of their arrival had spread to everyone, the hall obeyed. She shot a glance to Gajeel, looking him over as though sizing him up, making a final choice before she said, “Let’s go.”

He needed nothing else, no other encouragement to follow her outside. If not for intrigue alone, he was fully committed to following her into the dark outside.

At first they saw nothing. The street was empty, and the screaming had stopped. _Are we too late?_ She thought, eyes scanning the street. In the doorways lining the dirt road cutting through the settlement, people began to peer their heads out. However, when they saw the two of them standing outside, they retreated. _Good, saves me having to announce us,_ she thought with some relief.

Levy glanced to Gajeel after looking up and down the roadway. She paused, several thoughts flying across her face before she looked away from him up the road, eastward. “You head that way,” she gestured with her hand opposite where she was looking, “see if you can find a body; anyone wandering.” The steely tone left little room for him to question her, and he nodded quickly before turning away. Gajeel took several steps away from her, searching, before something prickled on the back of his neck.

“I didn’t think it would be quite so difficult to catch her more than a few feet from you.” A woman’s voice cut through the night and Gajeel whirled, seeing Trea, the innkeeper, standing behind Levy. Lantern light glimmered off a metal object at her throat, and it took a moment for him to realize it was a dagger, poised dangerously close to her skin

A moment, before his eyes narrowed and he took a heavy step back towards them. “O-oi! The hell you think you’re doing; let her go!” Gajeel shouted. 

“Ah-ah,” the woman cautioned, pushing the blade a little closer to the Time Lady’s neck, stopping Gajeel immediately. His eyes met Levy’s and to his surprise they were remarkably calm, while he struggled to not rush them both. He might have almost thought she was trying to comfort him with her gentle stare, not an ounce of worry or fear there. Gajeel looked back to Trea, gritting his teeth in frustration. “I have to say, I didn’t expect this. This town doesn’t have it’s share of surprises. Well, except for me,” she smiled unnervingly, a cunning lacing her features that hadn’t been there when they first met her, huffing out a small laugh. “These people might think you’re some envoy from their Baron but they are simple, unimaginative folk.”

 “You spotted us as soon as we arrived,” Levy commented, her tone even. “When we walked past the cemetery. You were someone else then.” 

Gajeel furrowed his brow, shifting his weight from one foot to another uneasily. He felt completely helpless, and the sight of her with death at her neck was nigh unbearable. But still, he was distracted briefly by what she had said. _Someone else?_

“Aah, perceptive little thing, aren’t you? So perceptive the mere figure of an angel statue stopped you cold; tell me, how many times have you met them and lived?”

Now a flinch rippled Levy’s features, but only for a moment. _Enough to catch your attention._

“I thought as much; what a cliche pair you are. The brains,” Trea slowly moved her sharp, serpentine stare to Gajeel, “and the muscle. But, it seems I’ve been found out as well. How exciting!” Amusement hung heavy on her tone, and she slowly moved the dagger up alone the skin of Levy’s neck. “Which means I’m sure you know what’s next, but I’d love to hear your take, m’lady.”

Levy laughed bitterly, tilting her chin upwards a little to ease the pressure on her flesh. “I fear you overestimate me. I merely noticed what didn’t belong: a pendant of crafting that doesn’t quite fit here. The woman I saw in as we arrived wore it and,” she turned her head slightly, careful of the blade, and looked at her captor from the corners of her cold, golden eyes, “now you do. Clearly it’s killing people.” 

Trea frowned slightly, but it quickly faded, “Shame. You’re close but...I expected more. I’d hoped for a few more moments of entertainment but, it’s time for what I really want.” She looked back to Gajeel again, whose knuckles had turned white. “You.” Levy tensed suddenly, looking to him as well with a noticeable loss of her previous calm. Surprise flickered in her eyes. “All of these vessels are so, _frail,_ and they expire so quickly. But you, I can see it in your eyes, there is more to you than the others. Something far more delectable.” Again Levy’s eyes swept over Gajeel, but this time she searched for something new.

Her companion, however, was quick to cut in. “The hell you on about? I ain’t letting you do a damn thing to me,” Gajeel barked back to her. Frustratingly, Trea answered with a laugh.

“Oh my dear brute, you don’t have a choice,” with her free hand, the innkeeper gripped Levy’s shoulder in a claw-like hold, pulling her closer. “You’re going to waltz on over here and take my pendant, or I bleed her like a lamb. And judging by your proximity over this last day, I don’t think you’re keen on that happening.”

 Gajeel flinched, looking from her to Levy, the woman he had known for two days, give or take. It was hard to keep up. Was he really considering letting… whatever this was, take him to save her? It would have been the right thing to do, regardless who she was.

Before he realized, he had taken a step forward, every muscle tensed. _The hell are you doin’? You don’t even know what you’re getting into and you’re gonna what, take a chance to help her? She’s the one that got us into this mess! And for what?_ His sense shouted defiantly in his thoughts, but all he could see was the enthralling blue-haired woman with a knife poised at her throat.

  
All of his sense left him, drowned out by one thing. _I can’t let this happen._ If he ever had another independent thought again after this, he might chalk it up to a bleeding heart and an overactive conscience he worked hard to conceal. But he might never have the chance to defend himself, knowing how the others ended up.

“Fine,” Gajeel finally responded, prompting a look of shock from the Time Lady. He entire body locked up. Gajeel intentionally kept his gaze away from her, which he knew held nothing but protest and disapproval.

“Approach, then. Slowly. And remember, try anything, and she pays for it,” Trea, not Trea, warned.

 He didn’t need to be told, more than aware of what was at stake. Gajeel took another step forward, slowly closing the distance. The Time Lady narrowed her eyes thoughtfully, having not anticipated this outcome. _Interesting_. 

“A Vimm,” Levy said suddenly, stopping Gajeel for a moment. She felt the knife ease away from her neck suddenly, and the grip on her shoulder faltered. “You are a Vimm. There’s the truth; I know exactly what you are because I have seen you before. You want a consciousness that will feed you for more than a few days? You want me. Not him.” The grip on her shoulder disappeared, but the knife remained. Trea was quiet for a few moments, and feeling the hesitation Levy took her chance, “I’m sure you know we’re not from this time. It’s why you targeted us. How we know what you are doesn’t matter much, does it?” Levy made eye contact with the woman, her gaze piercing, “You just know we’re better than the swill you’ve been drinking and must have had a means of getting here. And now you know I have more to offer than the brute. So take me.”

Those final three words jolted through Gajeel, shattering the resolve he had dedicated to getting her out of that mess. “O-oi, Shrimp!” He burst in a mixture of offense and protest, but when she flicked her eyes to him, his throat dried up. The gold, more brilliant than ever, was fierce. What he had seen, for that brief moment in the Tardis, was there again. The centuries, the age, and this time she did not conceal it.

“I see we are past the point of playing coy,” Trea commented, her free hand moving to clasp the ornate pendant.

 “Damnit, Shrimp! You said yourself it kills people! What the hell am I supposed to do here? How are ya gonna throw yourself away like that?” Gajeel took another hard step forward, but the woman merely brandished the dagger in front of Levy, at him.

The sound of a door swinging open now caught their attention, and they looked to a very alarmed Warner, holding his sword unsheathed. He had burst from a building, ready to face the disturbance, but the sight of Trea had stopped him. The distraction was all the possessed innkeep needed, and with one quick motion pulled the necklace over her head with her free hand. Trea dropped the knife, took the necklace in both hands, and dropped it over Levy’s neck.

“No!”

The second the item left Trea’s grip, she dropped to the ground in a heap, clawing at her throat where the pendant had been. Levy stumbled and hunched forward, taking in a sharp breath. Her arms hung forward and she kept her head low, hair concealing her face.

“Trea!” Warner shouted, racing to the shaking woman. He dropped his sword beside her and took her in his arms, but needed to only see her glassy eyes to know what had become of her. Though he didn’t understand how, he knew it had to have something to do with the strange woman that had entered their town. The one that was still standing. Moved by anguish, he reached out for his sword again, eyes fixed on Levy.

Gajeel didn’t miss it, and it broke him out of his stupor. “Don’t!” Gajeel barked suddenly and forcefully enough to give Warner pause. “Don’t. Touch her.” The look of distrust on the other man’s face was clear, and Gajeel lifted a hand, “Just wait a damn second. It’s not her, it’s…” well, he didn’t know what the hell it was. “Just wait.”

Levy swayed a little, and finally, started to straighten up. “Oh…” she exhaled deeply, lifting her head quickly with a big smile on her face, hair flowing around her features. Eyes wild. “Oh this is _exquisite._ It’s so, different. There’s so much. More than I can even reach. I can’t even see the bottom!” The frenzied woman let out a quick laugh, gripping both sides of her head and spinning in a single circle on one foot before finally focusing back onto Gajeel. “You!” She snapped her fingers at him, trying to break him from the daze he was in. “Who is she? _What_ is she? This is not the mind of a human.”

 _It took her._ Just like that, she looked entirely different. The sparkle was gone, she looked duller somehow, even if overall she became much more manic. The gold of her irises, if hadn’t known better, had turned to ash. This wasn’t the same woman he had come here with. Whatever that necklace was, had stolen her. Stolen her from him, he realized. But he wasn’t as disturbed by that as he was by the _muffling_ of her. He could think of no other way to put it. “You, took her,”

“That’s not what I asked you,” she snapped. “But I’ll get to it eventually. Recent memories to sift through. A lot of you, really. Oh, she likes you.” Levy winked, then continued to speak as though she was flipping through a book, eyes focusing on nothing in particular, “You, you, and oh-ho,” her eyes widened, happening upon a memory that caught her attention, “What a _ship_. A ship! Bigger on the inside? But no, wait, it’s a _time machine?_ That explains you two. Now, _there_ are some possibilities. I only know of one race that makes one like--” The possessed woman stopped suddenly, eyes growing wide. She jolted like a shock ran through her. “That, no. She’s not, there aren’t any…!” Suddenly she was looking straight through him, unfocused, and her mouth moving to try and form words she couldn’t finish. She staggered backwards a step, the air leaving her lungs in horror.

Behind her, Warner held the innkeep closer, inching away from the, and the spectacle that was unfolding before him.

 Finally Gajeel found his composure, closing the distance and taking hold of her upper arms. “Levy! You in there?! Hey, come on!” He called, shaking her gently, but her expression didn’t change.

 “There’s so, I-I can’t. So much, so many… I see all of it, at once! I can’t take--all this at once!” Her eyes were searching now, and finally in an instant they focused back onto him like he was an answer to the crisis, a vicious glare on her features. “I need out--out! It burns!” she cried out, shaking considerably. “I can see them. They’re dying, all of them are...!” Levy’s hands flew up to take the necklace, which now glowed a faint blue he hadn’t noticed before. “You. I need, you, before she--” She started to lift it, and Gajeel’s grip loosened slightly when he realized what she meant to do. But he didn’t outright recoil from her. 

Then, just as quickly as it had started, she stopped, her face becoming far more calm. A quiet, punctuated only by both of their hurried breaths, settled back upon them. The glow of the necklace brightened suddenly, and the woman let out a deep sigh, closing her eyes slowly. More breaths, settling herself, heaving her shoulders.

“Too much at once?” Her voice was quiet, gentle, but vaguely threatening. Different from the Vimm’s; far more refined, and primally frightening. “Vimms are leechers, not gorgers. And _you_ are not made for a conscience like _mine_ ,” she paused, “You are finished here.” Like a dying flame, the pendant’s glow fizzled, sputtered, and just like that it was gone. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked back up to her companion. The resplendent gold staggered his heart’s rhythm for a split second, and the warm smile almost stopped it. “Hello.” 

“You, you’re, are you…?” he stammered, all coherency leaving him.

“Yes me,” she smiled, glancing at his hands. “You can let me go now.” Shocked, he dropped his hands and took a quick step back. Levy took off the necklace nonchalantly, earning a strongly suspicious stare from the man. “It’s safe now. Short circuited as it were. Or, something of the like. Not quite because it wasn’t electronic but… oh you get it.”

“What… the hell… did you _do?_ ” he finally got out, “What was that?”

“Yes,” Warner’s voice cut between them, bringing their attention back to the startled, and still armed man. One arm held up his sword defensively, the other clutched a motionless Trea to his knelt frame. “ _What_ have you done? And what magic is this?” His voice was sharp, and dangerously accusatory. Levy already knew how this would go, but she could still hope that an explanation would be the tiniest bit beneficial. Still, in what she had tried to make look like thoughtful pacing, she separated herself from the two of them before speaking. 

“This?” She gestured with the necklace, before pulling open her coat pocket and dropping it inside. “Harmless trinket now.” Levy could see on both their faces that this wasn’t a sufficient answer. “Vimms--what that was--feed on consciousness, minds, until there is nothing left. A human can feed a Vimm for a few weeks if they want to make it last, or drain them in hours.” Levy glanced to Trea, “Leaving nothing left. She could have done the same to you,” she looked back to Gajeel, “Easily. And obviously we couldn’t have that, though I appreciate the sentiment. But if she knew I was Time Lord, she would have never chosen me. Time Lord consciousness is more than anyone but a Time Lord can take.” She looked to him now, “You did well, Metal Man. Even called me by my name. I’d say that’s progress.” She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

“And where the hell does that leave us? You’ve done this! How are you going to undo it?” Warner demanded, gesturing to the woman in his arms.

Unable to say anything, Gajeel looked to Levy, who had something he couldn’t quite pin on her expression. She was calm, but there wasn’t the worry of someone who was facing a mistake, or crisis. It was almost the face of someone who wasn’t surprised; someone who had expected this. She was the doctor holding bad news that had been expected from the start, ready to break it to the family.

“There’s nothing that can be done.” Flat-toned, blunt. Levy looked directly at Warner, “It can’t be reversed, there is nothing you can do for her but keep her comfortable. And Lana, the herbalist...she is out here somewhere in the same state. She is the one that was held before her.”

His knuckles turned white, gripping his weapon. He trembled, but stayed put. “You,” his voice was strained, and it cracked slightly, “You said that thing was gone? Entirely?”

Levy nodded.

“Then leave. Never return here, or I will meet you with violence. If not for your darkness, then for impersonating the Baron’s scout,” The guard shifted his blade in his grip to punctuate his threat, but it wasn’t necessary.

“I am sorry for your loss,” Levy replied gently, turning so quickly to walk away that it stunned Gajeel. His mouth hung open, feeling as though he should say something, but the piercing glare from Warner urged him after her.

The walk back to the Tardis was painfully quiet, and it wasn’t until she was standing in front of the doors that she heard him come to a heavy stop. She turned to face him, knowing he had been stewing on the words he wanted to say to her. She didn’t need to prompt him, she just waited.

“That girl’s gonna die,” he said simply. 

“Yes,” she replied. “She’s already dead,” Levy added. “This is the past. In your life, she’s centuries past. She’s dust.” She clasped her hands behind her back, standing very still. 

Each statement seemed loaded, but Gajeel was too frustrated to notice. “No, nuh-uh. You can’t say that. This ain’t the past. We are here _now,_ and she is alive--dying-- _now,_ ” he shot back, gradually raising his voice. “And we were part of it.”

The Time Lady’s eyes looked him over for a moment, taking in the aggravation etched on his features and the heated outrage that radiated off of him. She deliberately said nothing, waiting for the train of his thoughts to direct itself.

“Aren’t you bothered by that?” he finally demanded.

“Are you?”

 Gajeel faltered, stunned that she would ask such a thing. He sputtered for a moment, tilting his head in disbelief. “I’m an asshole but I’m not a damn monster. Of course I care that she’s gonna die. And for what? Because you had to show off? And to so eagerly let it nearly happen to you,” he could see her start to try and disagree, but he cut her off, “I don’t care if you think you got some damn top tier invincible brain that only _you_ can handle or what-the-fuck-ever, I didn’t know that. You didn’t tell me and so you got me thinking it’s gonna happen to you. I don’t care how you wanna slice it, it ain’t alright for you to mess with me like that. You got a damn plan? Tell me!”

She watched his shoulders heave from the effort, her brow furrowed thoughtfully. After a quiet moment, she nodded, “Okay.”

His shoulders dropped and he staggered a little. “ _What?_ ”

“I said okay. I’ll tell you next time,” she replied. “I just needed to know if there would be a next time.”

“The hell is that supposed to mean?”

Levy sighed, “Not everyone I meet is of stellar character. And I only take the best with me. I needed to know who you were. And you’ve showed me. Both just now and when you offered yourself to the Vimm. I will keep you in the loop for now on.” Before he could think of a reply, she reached into her coat pocket and produced a small metal object that left Gajeel wondering just how much she could possibly stash away in one garment. “And yes, I do care. Deeply. More than I can express, really. But I have spent a great deal of time alone; which makes the maintenance of humanity difficult for someone who isn’t human. I need someone to remind me.” She held out the object to him, which he could now see was a key on a silver chain, “If you still want to.”

Gajeel released his tension as understanding replaced his anger, and he released a shaky breath. A key to the Tardis. A solidification of his invitation.

Holding the key in front, her eyes probed him for any answer. “I told you, at the start, that it would be dangerous. But it is also...this. People die, Gajeel. I try, but I cannot save them all. Sometimes we get days, those rare days, where everyone lives. I cling to those. You will have to as well. If you choose to come, but say the word and I will take you home, not 5 minutes from your departure, and you can return to your life.” There was a control, a practiced tone in her words that told him she had done this many times before. Like everything else he had already seen, and bit by bit he was comprehending her years.

 _This woman is a damn trip. But still…_ Slowly, he reached out and took her hand in his, studying her face for a moment, and finally flashed her a toothy smile. “Sure thing, short stuff.” Releasing his hold on her after a moment, he took the key and paused before dropping the chain over his head, “This isn’t gonna steal my brain, is it?” 

Levy chuckled, opening the doors behind her with a wink, “In a manner of speaking.”


End file.
